Uber's problems in London are Uber's problems everywhere

It sounds extreme, but what's happening to Uber in London isn't that different from the challenges Uber's faced in every city since 2009. And it's not that surprising for a company that made disrupting regulations part of its core mission from the beginning.

The city's transportation authority, Transport for London, determined on Friday that it wouldn't renew Uber's private hire license. Uber's longterm license expired back in May, and Uber received a four-month extension at the time that is just about up. Uber can and will appeal the decision—and can continue operating while the appeal moves through the courts—but its actual license expires Sept. 30.

More of the same

In its decision, TfL cited Uber's "approach to reporting serious criminal offenses," its "approach to how medical certificates are obtained," its "approach to how Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks are obtained," and how it explained Greyball, the program that tracked government regulators' use of the ride-hailing app (in order to hide activity) in the U.S.

That all sounds pretty familiar. Uber has faced criticism for years over its handling of issues like sexual assault by drivers or passengers. Enhanced DBS checks are British background checks—an issue on which cities across the world have criticized Uber for falling short. And Greyball first came under scrutiny in Portland, Oregon.

Those high-profile regulatory fights—even the ones that dragged on for months—all turned out to be ultimately temporary.

A different result

Even though Uber's fight in London is over the same issues, the result could be different. The city and TfL have been on the warpath against Uber. Before Uber's license was close to expiring, the two did battle over regulations that required Uber drivers to pass English-language exams and that forced Uber to set up physical 24/7 locations in the UK for customer support.

Greyball—a striking example of how far Uber is willing to go to thwart regulators—provided TfL with some new ammunition in its decision, even though Uber says the program has never been used in the UK and is now defunct elsewhere. Everything else the regulatory body cited is old news in cities' battles with Uber.

Dear London: we r far from perfect but we have 40k licensed drivers and 3.5mm Londoners depending on us. Pls work w/us to make things right

Uber has for some time been highly regulated in London, and Uber said in response to TfL's decision that its drivers undergo the same background checks as black cab drivers and that the company has always followed TfL's rules on reporting serious incidents.

TfL, though, has the support of London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

"I want London to be at the forefront of innovation and new technology and to be a natural home for exciting new companies that help Londoners by providing a better and more affordable service," Khan said in a statement. "However, all companies in London must play by the rules and adhere to the high standards we expect - particularly when it comes to the safety of customers. Providing an innovative service must not be at the expense of customer safety and security. I fully support TfL’s decision - it would be wrong if TfL continued to license Uber if there is any way that this could pose a threat to Londoners’ safety and security."

But it's London

Getting permanently kicked out would be worse for Uber in London too than it's been elsewhere. London is one of Uber's biggest markets. There's no Lyft competing with Uber in London—only significantly smaller ride-hailing operators and London's traditional black cabs.

TfL's decision has faced some blowback already. Uber drivers in London are worried about losing their jobs, and about 300,000 people have so far signed a petition launched by Uber on Friday protesting the decision.

“3.5 million Londoners who use our app, and more than 40,000 licensed drivers who rely on Uber to make a living, will be astounded by this decision. By wanting to ban our app from the capital Transport for London and the Mayor have caved in to a small number of people who want to restrict consumer choice. If this decision stands, it will put more than 40,000 licensed drivers out of work and deprive Londoners of a convenient and affordable form of transport," Uber said in a statement. “To defend the livelihoods of all those drivers, and the consumer choice of millions of Londoners who use our app, we intend to immediately challenge this in the courts."

Regulators don't like Uber anywhere, but in London they're more serious about it.

We'll see more rehashing of the same but on a bigger scale, as Uber said, in court.

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